Amazing and ambitious technology debut featured in this show. This first iteration of technology is a hardware based solution made up of a very full rack of UCS servers offering a DVR for the Data Center. The first real time monitoring and playback of any flow anywhere in the data center. I am hoping we continue to bring this technology down market...ideally making it some kind of 'software as a service' since it seems quite valuable for just about anyone trying to grapple with how fast things are moving these days.

Dig into the official stuff for more information. Or also, I always enjoy anything Joe Onisick does for explanations:

We had some sneak peeks at CiscoLive in London but as you probably know by now, this stuff was just formally announced last week. Several demos worth looking at give you the foundation for what is important. Shashi Kiran is leading this effort and you can always count on a good quote:

"Cisco takes Unified Fabric to the next level delivering compelling customer value in an evolutionary manner, we offer a switch with the industry's highest 40GbE density per rack unit, the simplest solution for the hybrid cloud model, and the most extensible network controller."

Interesting….tell us more...

Three areas of innovation: How we Scale (Nexus 6000), how we enable the Hybrid deployment model (Nexus 1000v InterCloud) and how we open it all up with Cisco ONE (Open Networking Environment)

The family expands with the Nexus 6000

The new Nexus 6004 switch offers extremely high performance—40 Gigabit Ethernet interface, or 40GbE—in a compact size. The switch can handle very bandwidth-hungry applications without taking up a lot of space in the data center, making it more energy-efficient and cost-effective. The Nexus 6004 delivers up to 96 ports of 40GbE; no other switch in the market can match the compactness and density.

Also worth mentioning in this arena: New Network Analysis Modules on the Nexus 7000 and new Fabric Extender solutions. Jimmy Ray talks to Deepak about application awareness and rich performance statistics with the NAM:

Clouds make more sense with the Nexus 1000v InterCloud

The Nexus 1000v 'inter cloud,' will allow customers to burst compute loads between private and public clouds. Sounds easy in theory. You can see the technology element we put into play here with the 1000V. The new term here is "Intercloud" which is designed to dramatically simplify the deployment of hybrid cloud solutions. Security is obviously a big play here as we need to maintain and transparently re-instate policy when when moving virtual machines from a private cloud to a public cloud.

This is really interesting stuff…maybe one of our favorite announcements. We have a Fundamentals of Hybrid Cloud in development but for now - I think you will find this conversation with Prashanth very helpful.

Great example of making the complex simple - in this case using the familiarity of VNMC: Virtual Network Management Center. Bit It also gives network operators end-to-end visibility into their virtual machines in the cloud and the traffic running across the network—simplifying management and while preserving policies intact. We did not talk in detail about the obvious benefit for service providers here but I expect there will be more on that as we deploy.

ONE is no longer the loneliest number with the Open Network Environment

We announced the Cisco ONE controller software, which helps IT more directly manage the network infrastructure, and more closely link applications to the network so that the network more efficiently responds to applications. We are now saying of course - this is the industries' most flexible network and fabric controller.

We also announced a broad range of updates across its Enterprise and Service Provider portfolio delivering with support for onePK, OpenFlow, etc., continuing to deliver against the Cisco ONE strategy.

Tomorrow, we will release a great interview on the ONE Controller as well - so watch for that!

So topically, Security in the Data Center is an easy hit of course. It seems to top many lists. As Cisco broadens the tool set with new models and deployment options, we broke this one down along party lines:

Jaishree brought in Scott Gainey for the top down view in Segment 2.

Jimmy Ray hosted Per Hagen as he explained how the new clustering technology in the ASA worked. NOTE: ASA 5515-X running the latest software release 8.6(1) was featured in the BYOD CVD (Cisco Validated Design) Smart Solution Design Guide.

Anil Kapur revealed how IPS (from Cisco anyway…) can now play effectively in a data center strategy.

Jeff Aboud joined me to illustrate how all of these new models now give us the flexibility to model a security architecture that complements the network/business strategy.

Swastik Bihani then joined us and showed new email encryption capabilities across all of our devices and web security changes worth knowing about.

For a good design guide on this one - check out this well done paper (pdf) from our friends at the SBA labs

Robb & Prashanth on Stage, Jimmy Ray on the Wireless FeedCiscoLive was held in beautiful San Diego this year. Sure wish we could do it here every year...its been Vegas (burnout!) for the last few years and now for 2013 I understand it will be Orlando. We followed a new pattern in our production here that seems to be working out well. Instead of producing 2 to 3 full themed shows, we are doing individual segments, editing them on site and uploading within what is usually a 3 hour time frame.

Clouded Understanding

The experts at TechWiseTV want to clear up the mystery and potential confusion of “cloud.” What it is and what it is not, why TechWiseTV thinks it is important and why you should too, and how to apply it within your own organization in whatever way and means it makes sense.

This episode is full of actionable information and insights, including:• A look into real-life deployments across a wide swath of industries • An in-depth look at the various hybrid cloud models worth considering• How Cisco’s Cloud Portal offering enables a flexible service model gateway

Cisco Wide Area Application Services - So many applications we need these days were never optimized for the networked, cloud intensive, world we now find ourselves in. Cisco WAAS (Wide Area Application Services) represents a system of technologies designed to accelerate complex applications and free up wasted bandwidth without modification to your environment. Unique capabilities are brought to your network and this Fundamentals of Cisco WAAS will make it easier to understand.

We just posted our Allen Data Center Field Trip special about a week ago and it is doing quite well...I made the mistake of posting the darn thing too early and so our 'lower res' version of it is up as well as the HD version...but both are rockin' it. Over 3,000 views combined as of today? I sure hope we can do more of these.